Suarez, Messi wonder strikes give Barca edge at Atletico

Reuters: Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi scored stunning goals to edge Barcelona towards a fourth consecutive King’s Cup final with a 2-1 win at Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, although the holders were lucky to survive a late onslaught from the hosts.

The return leg at the Nou Camp takes place next Tuesday although neither Barca forward Neymar nor Atletico captain Gabi will be able to play through suspension after picking up bookings.

“It would be absurd to think you can come to the Calderon and not suffer. We did everything to try and survive their waves of pressure and for now we can enjoy the result,” Barca coach Luis Enrique told reporters.

“You could say we should have been more effective in the second half and finished the tie off, but that’s just theory, the reality is they had a lot more chances than us. There’s things I need to improve but it’s a huge result for us.”

Man City dazzle as United held by Hull

Reuters: Manchester City turned on the style to dismantle West Ham United 4-0 and revive their fading Premier League title aspirations as Manchester United’s hopes suffered a potentially fatal blow with a goalless home draw against struggling Hull City on Wednesday.

City produced a scintillating first-half display, scoring three times before the break through Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva and new boy Gabriel Jesus, before YayaToure’s penalty capped a one-sided romp at the London Stadium.

Clinical finishing was in short supply at Old Trafford, however, where United came up against an inspired performance from Hull keeper EldinJakupovic, who made a string of superb saves to keep Jose Mourinho’s side at bay.

While City’s victory moved them level on 46 points with fourth-placed Liverpool and kept leaders Chelsea just about in their sights, United’s slip-up left them sixth, four points adrift of City and 14 off the summit.

Hull’s unlikely point moved them off the foot of the table while Stoke City and Everton drew 1-1.

City had already beaten West Ham twice this season with an aggregate score of 8-1 and they were returning to the London Stadium less than a month after thrashing their hosts 5-0 in the FA Cup third round.

United, facing Hull for the third time in 23 days after their League Cup semi-final, were thwarted by a determined Jakupovic, who saved well from ZlatanIbrahimovic and even more impressively from substitute Juan Mata.

Leicester out to halt demise against United

Reuters: Eight months after completing one of sport’s most remarkable triumphs of the underdog, Premier League champions Leicester City stand potentially one more bad result away from a place in the relegation zone.

Such has been their rapid demise that defeat against Manchester United on Sunday, coupled with good weekends for relegation rivals Crystal Palace and Swansea City, and a place in the bottom three will be theirs.

Having suffered a third successive defeat on Tuesday with a 1-0 loss at Burnley, the almost unthinkable scenario of Leicester dropping out of the top flight a year after straddling its summit moved another step closer.Manager Claudio Ranieri may not be pressing the panic button, but the post mortem following their Turf Moor reverse, which left them with the worst record after 23 games of any reigning Premier League champions, pinpointed some familiar themes.

Leicester finished last season having conceded 36 goals, yet have already shipped 38 in just 23 outings.

Things are not much better at the other end of the pitch. At this point last year, Ranieri’s side had found the net 42 times, but have currently only managed 24.

The highlight of the weekend’s fixtures sees Arsenal, beaten at home to Watford on Tuesday, hoping to rejuvenate their title bid with victory on Saturday at leaders Chelsea, who are nine points clear at the summit.

Tottenham Hotspur, who are ahead of Arsenal on goal difference in second place, host Middlesbrough on Saturday, when Liverpool visit Hull City, while Manchester City host Swansea on Sunday.